Shoshone Falls, Snake River, Idaho, looking through the timber, and showing the main fall, and upper or "Lace Falls", No. 49 from the series "Geographical Explorations and Surveys West of the 100th Meridian"

Photography and Media

1874

Timothy O’Sullivan (American, born Ireland, 1840–1882)
commissioned by George Wheeler for the War Department, Corps of Engineers, U.S. Army

In 1871 Timothy O’Sullivan, who had gained acclaim photographing the Civil War, was recruited by George M. Wheeler of the U.S. War Department to join a government survey of lands west of the 100th meridian. Working alongside scientists and cartographers, O’Sullivan produced large-format prints for study and official use, as well as stereographic cards for a general audience. Stereographs were made by taking two photographs of the same scene with lenses about two and a half inches apart to match the distance between human eyes. Viewed through a stereoscope, the two images combine to give the illusion of deep space. Hugh Edwards acquired several O’Sullivan works, including the complete two-volume Wheeler survey and boxed stereo set from which this image comes, as well as the photographs he made for Gardner’s Photographic Sketch Book of the War, published by Alexander Gardner.

Status: Currently Off View
Department: Photography and Media

Artist: Timothy O'Sullivan
Title: Shoshone Falls, Snake River, Idaho, looking through the timber, and showing the main fall, and upper or "Lace Falls", No. 49 from the series "Geographical Explorations and Surveys West of the 100th Meridian"
Place: United States (Artist's nationality:)
Date Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.: Made 1874
Medium: Albumen print, stereo
Dimensions: Each image: 9.2 × 7.5 cm (3 5/8 × 3 in.); Card: 10 × 17.7 cm (3 15/16 × 7 in.)
Credit Line: Photography Gallery Fund
Reference Number: 1959.616.45
IIIF Manifest The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world. Learn more.: https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/210786/manifest.json

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Shoshone Falls, Snake River, Idaho, looking through the timber, and showing the main fall, and upper or "Lace Falls", No. 49 from the series "Geographical Explorations and Surveys West of the 100th Meridian"

Currently Off View

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Date Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

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IIIF Manifest The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world. Learn more.

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IIIF Manifest The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world.

Learn more.